01/01/2025
CLARENDON HOUSE 2024: A YEAR IN REVIEW
Did you catch all the action?
44 publications, ranging from the ever-vibrant monthly Inner Circle Writers’ Magazine, to superb works of fiction like Mel Lee Newmin’s A Plague of Nomen, to brilliant collections like L. T. Waterson’s Falling.
Here’s a complete summary for your delectation:
THE INNER CIRCLE WRITERS’ MAGAZINE # 60
With this sixtieth issue, we wrap up our fifth year as an ongoing monthly publication of invaluable use to writers old and new! Inside, we get to meet D. R. Bailey and discover the secrets to his success as a professional author, plus we find out how best to acquire the professional book cover design that you need in an article from the Ukrainian designers Miblart.
On the fiction front, we have another chapter in George MacDonald’s beloved masterpiece ‘At the Back of the North Wind’, and the final instalment of Pauline Ashwell’s science fiction thriller ‘The Lost Kafoozalum,’ but I particularly wanted to draw your attention to the short story at the heart of this issue, ‘Nun or Not?’ by Gabriella Balcom. Lavishly presented in an illustrated form here, it remains one of the best of the many hundreds of stories I have read over the last few years -don’t miss it!
There’s more of course: Tony J. Fyler’s review of the 2005 War of the Worlds film, a quiz, expert marketing and business advice, and gifts galore!
Galaxy # 14: An Inner Circle Writers' Group Science Fiction and Fantasy Anthology
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies
Cars —and trees— that go crazy, goddesses of war, monsters that aren’t really monsters, raiding planets, cosmic conspiracies, Tudor kings travelling through time, strange kinds of dragon, humans mutating into alien creatures, ghostly visitations and a special mission to a distant world which doesn’t go according to plan - it’s all here for science fiction and fantasy fans, from some of the newest and best talent on the planet.
Featuring the work of Catherine A. MacKenzie, Gabriella Balcom, CL Steele, Tony Fyler, Craig R. Tickner, RLM Cooper, Matthew Kresal, Garry Engkent, Jim Bates, Lisa H. Owens, P.A. O’Neil, DJ Elton, Deryn Pittar, Linda Sparks, the Birch Twins, Gareth Macready, Drew D. Lenhart, Ed Ahern, Chad Gayle, Michal Reiben and a special bonus feature from the author of Noman’s Land, Mel Lee Newmin.
Spacetruckers 3: Starlight and Love Songs
by Andrew and Helen Birch
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/andrew-and-helen-birch
The adventures of the Emerald Queen, an old green CX19 cargo dropship, continue to expand, and the whole Spacetruckers world grows deeper and richer, with rounded characters, fascinating planets, alien gangsters, exotic creatures, deadly robots, real human drama and tragedy.
Andrew and Helen Birch, authors of Travels with a Barbarian, bring you the next set of tales from the Spacetruckers universe, for lovers of genuine science fiction, stories with emotion, pathos and a sense of humour
A Yorkshire Picture Book: Into the Golden Woods
By Grant P. Hudson
Welcome to this second book of images of my home landscape, South Yorkshire. Some of these pictures are from the High Bradfield area, some are from the hills above Wharncliffe Side, all taken at the height of the Autumn season.
THE INNER CIRCLE WRITERS’ MAGAZINE # 61
In this month’s issue, we welcome the return of one of the world’s toughest writing contests, The Great Clarendon House Writing Challenge, with its prize of a book contract from Clarendon House. Find out who has won each year since it began in 2019, and discover what YOU have to do to win, on page 12!
We also get to meet the mighty Dennis W. Doty and find out what projects he’s working on and all about his fascinating life and career, starting on page 18.
There’s loads more, with a quiz, gifts, submission opportunities, marketing secrets, the Seven Levels of Attention, and fiction from Gary Bonn, George MacDonald and a complete fully illustrated Sherlock Holmes story from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself: ‘The Red-Headed League’ begins on page 116!
A Yorkshire Picture Book: Winter Walks
By
Grant P Hudson
Welcome to this third book of images of my home landscape, South Yorkshire. Again, most of these are from the Stocksbridge and Bolsterstone region, with a few slightly further afield. I walk about two miles a day, and purposefully take these pictures for others to enjoy - the beauty of my surroundings is so great that it feels irresponsible to keep it to myself. No matter which direction I set out, the scenery is staggering.
Poetica # 16: An Inner Circle Writers' Group Poetry Anthology
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies
There is a common assumption among poets and readers generally that ‘There is no market for poetry.’ I hear this regularly.
This idea arises because, in the big world of publishing, poetry is seen to be a private, highly subjective affair which correspondingly does not sell well. Personal tastes, obscurity of form, and lack of poetic craft all add up to poetry being ‘shoved into the corner’ and usually only self-published or produced as a vanity piece.
This is a shame. There are a great many good poets out there: thousands of voices whose passionate visions of reality are not finding a proper outlet. Without channels to transmit these visions to readers, they can eventually fall silent.
The effort of this series of Poetica anthologies is to contribute to the creation of a market for poetry throughout the calendar year. The idea is that, by providing a regular, published venue for poetry from all over the world, poems as media for the communication of important and heartfelt ideas and reflections will gain in respect and become more widely acknowledged. Voices will be heard; channels will be opened.
Featuring the work of (in order of appearance): Ed Ahern, Linda M. Crate, Michal Reiben, Catherine A. MacKenzie, Giuseppina Marino Leyland, Sultana Raza, Kelli J Gavin, Elizabeth Brown, Suranjit Gain, Jim Bates, Craig Tickner, Jonah Jones, Engilbert Egill Stefánsson, Anne Marie Lake, the Birch Twins, Gareth Macready, Justin Wiggins, Mike Turner, Annie Nardone, Duane Vorhees, DJ Elton, Afshan Aqil, Jacek Wilkos, Linda Sparks, Marlene Fabian Stiles, David Painter, Richard Rose, Gabriella Balcom, Petrouchka Alexieva, Dawn DeBraal, Fhen M., Trish Bailey, Kerri Jesmer, Dr. Elizabeth V. Koshy, Peter Kenny, Tony Fyler, Aminath Neena, Vanessa Caraveo, Thomas R Bates, Sharon Frame Gay, Tim Law, Nnamdi Chinkere Anyahara, Lisa H. Owens and Jill Kiesow.
THE CLARENDON HOUSE SHORT STORY MAGAZINE ISSUE # 15
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/free-items
Downloadable for free from the Clarendon House website here, each magazine contains a selection of stories from the collections which Clarendon House has already published — but because the magazine is a directly downloadable pdf, each story is fully illustrated. As you will know if you’re reading this, you have been able to obtain the pdf easily, without having to input even an email address. We encourage you to forward this pdf far and wide for the enjoyment of readers everywhere. It contains links to the Clarendon House collections from which each story is drawn, so it helps every author involved to reach more and more readers.
Feedback is welcome! Drop us a line at [email protected]
In this issue:
All Alone in the Dark by Gary Bonn
“Long-abandoned area. Maybe no-one’s ventured here for decades. Can you hear
echoes of distant movement, scurrying, hissing and the slow drip-drip of water? It’s so dark. We ought to get video of this just in case. For the record, you know. People may find our corpses and want to know what happened. I’ll use my phone.” So begins this short tale by Gary Bonn - but all is not what it seems...
The Prologue of The Sword Sundergost by Alexander Marshall
Come to Gandria, land of haunted forests, noble people and a mystical sword. A baby has been born, deep in the woods, under threat. Can its father Lisaean bring himself to show mercy?
Doombot by Andrew and Helen Birch
From the world of Spacetruckers comes this chilling tale of a robot run amok - with only Alicia Brook and Jim Carver in its way...
Artists, Myth & Hope
by Justin Wiggins
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/justin-wiggins
"Justin Wiggins’ Artists, Myth, & Hope continues the fine work of his Surprised by Agape and Tir na nÓg. This new book surveys the value of a number of writers including John Donne, the Brontës, George MacDonald, C. S. Lewis, T. S. Eliot, J. R. R. Tolkien, Madeleine L’Engle, Joy Davidman, N. T. Wright, and many others. Readers will be encouraged to examine these writers and themselves and to reflect upon the power of the written word."
-Dr. Don King C.S. Lewis scholar and Author of Inkling, Historian, Soldier, and Brother: A Life of Warren Hamilton Lewis
"Reading these well-crafted stories of the lives of great authors is like finding a treasure chest of glittering gems. The stories sparkle not only because they present fascinating details about the authors’ lives, but because they point to The Source of all light that illuminates the writing of each author."
-Dr. Steven A. Beebe, Ph.D., Regents’ and University Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Texas State University
Author of C. S. Lewis and the Craft of Communication
Justin Wiggins is an author who works and lives in the primitive, majestic, beautiful mountains of North Carolina. He graduated with his Bachelor's in English Literature, with a focus on C.S. Lewis studies, from Montreat College in May 2018. His first book was Surprised by Agape, published by Grant Hudson of Clarendon House Publications. His second book, Surprised By Myth, was co-written with Grant Hudson and published in 2021. His other books, Marty & Irene, Tír na nÓg, Celtic Twilight, Celtic Song, Ragnarok, Celtic Dawn, and Sacred Space, co-written with Matthew Huff, were all published by Steve Cawte of Impspired. His most recent book, Artists, Myth & Hope, was published by Grant Hudson of Clarendon House Publications in 2024. Wiggins has also had poems and other short pieces published by Clarendon House Publications, Sehnsucht: The C.S. Lewis Journal, and Sweetycat Press. Justin has a great zeal for life, work, community, writing, literature, art, pubs, bookstores, coffee shops, and for England, Scotland, and Ireland.
THE INNER CIRCLE WRITERS’ MAGAZINE # 62
In this issue, journey into the world of book cover design with Julia from Miblart, PLUS read the first instalment of the Edgar Allan Poe classic ‘The Murders in the Rue Morgue’ - the fabled precursor of detective fiction!
There’s also fiction from Tim Law, Gary Bonn and the next part of George MacDonald’s serial ‘At the Back of the North Wind’ as well as a review of John Le Carré’s ‘Call of the Dead’ by Tony J. Fyler and more on how to control attention and get feedback from customers in our ongoing series ‘The Seven Levels of Attention’ and ‘The Wonderful World of Marketing’.
And much more, of course, including a glimpse of the mediaeval universe through the eyes of C. S. Lewis, AND details of how to win a book contract by entering The Great Clarendon House Writing Challenge for 2024!
Galaxy # 15: An Inner Circle Writers' Group Science Fiction and Fantasy Anthology
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies
Unusual pirates, strange, dystopian futures, monsters lurking on the edge of reality, a museum of aliens, the dynamics of android life, living multiple existences through time, life (and death) on a space station, being your own fairy godmother, wizards and familiars, superheroes with unusual powers, Martian gangsters, eternal wars in space, cruel aliens, the unforeseen consequences of global warming, space racing, adventures in a mysterious city, all the colour, drama and excitement of science fiction and fantasy are here.
Featuring the work of Raphael Merriman, Tony Fyler, Catherine A. MacKenzie, Lisa H. Owens, Jim Bates, Gabriella Balcom, Gareth Macready, the Birch Twins, Michal Reiben, Jonah Jones, Justin Jones, Linda Sparks, Timothy Law, Mark Pearce, Maggie D Brace, Dawn DeBraal, Jean Frost Smith, David Painter, Lucy Waterson, Ed Ahern, Drew D. Lenhart, Madeleine McDonald and Jacek Wilkos.
Falling: A Collection of Short Stories
by L. T. Waterson
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/ltwaterson
From murder mystery to fantasy, from love story to edgy horror, L. T. Waterson displays a deftness and delicacy with words in this short story collection which is bound to entertain. Within these pages you’ll meet lovers of all kinds, brave souls, people on the edge of existence and at its heart, all skilfully portrayed, playing your heartstrings like a harp.
L. T. Waterson lives in a house full of books, halfway up a hill in Southampton, England. In the past she has been both a journalist and an archaeologist, and has an abiding interest in history. She has written many short stories -this is her first collection.
THE INNER CIRCLE WRITERS’ MAGAZINE # 63
Apart from getting to meet author and poet Dawn DeBraal (who has written more stuff than you will believe!) this month we also have the first round of the Great Clarendon House Writing Challenge, in which YOU the reader get to decide who goes through to the possibility of winning a book contract!
Plus we have advice from Gary Bonn about ‘writing rules’, an audiobook review from Tony Fyler, and the next instalment of ‘At the Back of the North Wind’ by George MacDonald - in addition to the concluding part of the ground-breaking detective story by Edgar Allan Poe, ‘The Murders in the Rue Morgue’!
AND fiction from L. T. Waterson and a quiz, gifts that could transform your writing career, submission opportunities and more!
Poetica # 17: An Inner Circle Writers' Group Poetry Anthology
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies
Poetica # 17 features the work of Fhen M, Peter Kenny, the Birch Twins, Mike Turner, Michal Reiben, Petrouchka Alexieva, Kerri Jesmer, David Painter, Poetry by Christina, Dawn DeBraal, Deryn Pittar, Tim Law, Gareth Macready, ’N’, Jacek Wilkos, Kelli J Gavin, DJ Elton, Sultana Raza, Gabriella Balcom, Justin Wiggins, Justin Jones, James Hancock, Afshan Aqil, Tony Fyler, Linda M. Crate, Melissa J Foote, Jonah Jones, Catherine A. MacKenzie, Linda Sparks, Dr. Elizabeth V. Koshy, Lisa H. Owens, Craig Tickner, Ed Ahern, RLM Cooper, Jim Bates, Gary Bonn, Jan McCulloch, Anne Marie Lake, Lenna and Trish Bailey.
THE CLARENDON HOUSE SHORT STORY MAGAZINE ISSUE # 16
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/free-items
In this issue:
SSS by Gary Bonn
Staring a new job in a ‘dismal hole’ in the middle of nowhere becomes a life-changing experience...
The Promise by L. T. Waterson
‘They said I broke my promise. That I didn’t come back although I said I would. I swore it with my dying breath and what vow is more sacred than that? They said I lied but I did not...’ L. T. Waterson’s tale of war leads us in unexpected directions.
Grandma Come by Peter Toeg
"We do not see the world as it is, we see the world as we are" is the epigraph from The Talmud which introduces us to this touching memoir from Peter Toeg.
A Plague of Nomen
by Mel Lee Newmin
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/mel-lee-newmin
In this pulse-pounding sequel to the destined-to-be-a-classic Noman’s Land, Mel Lee Newmin takes us further into the world of an intelligent alien race whose vast spacecraft attacks Earth outposts without mercy, finding itself on the frontier of a potentially vicious war.
Expert linguist and political rebel Daj Dimarco has been kidnapped by the alien nomen and forced to act out a central role in the confrontation between two very different civilisations - something which gets more and more difficult as crisis after crisis piles onto his shoulders. And while he desperately tries to avoid both races from annihilating each other, he begins to discover a horrifying secret at the heart of the alien empire which might well mean the death of everyone with whom it comes into contact…
Mel Lee Newmin presents another story in the Noman series destined to be a classic of the science fiction genre: a unique combination of hard science and fast-paced action which will make you think and have you on the edge of your seat at the same time.
THE BIGGEST PROBLEM WRITERS HAVE
by Grant P Hudson
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/free-items
What’s the biggest problem writers have (once they’ve successfully written something)?
Is it technical errors in submitted manuscripts? No.
Is it missing deadlines? No.
Is it not being able to quickly deal with urgent queries? No.
Is it stubbornness about necessary changes to your work? No.
Find out what it is and why it's crucial to deal with it if you ever want to succeed, in this FREE advice-packed, fully illustrated e-book.
THE SEVEN FUNCTIONS OF THE SELF-PUBLISHED AUTHOR
by Grant P Hudson
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/free-items
Are you disappointed that you have put so much work into your writing but don't seem to be getting anywhere?
Do you feel overloaded but can't quite see why?
Are you assuming that all you have to do is to get your book available on Amazon and the money will start rolling in?
Do you want to grasp exactly what you need to do to make things work smoothly?
In this fully illustrated e-book you will find answers to many mysteries and be able to put your writing career on a magical new footing.....and it's COMPLETELY FREE!
THE INNER CIRCLE WRITERS’ MAGAZINE # 64
In this issue, you get to discover which five authors made it through to the second round of the Great Clarendon House Writing Challenge - and what their Technical Challenge will be! Turn to page 10 to find out more!
Also in this issue: we get to meet prolific author Gabriella Balcom and learn what drives her to write. Gabriella is the author of hundreds of tales and poems, including ‘Nun or Not?’, one of the best short stories I have ever read.
We continue George MacDonald’s ‘At the Back of the North Wind’ and get the first instalment of Nikolai Gogol’s classic tale ‘The Overcoat’, plus we get fiction from Andrew and Helen Birch in ‘Doombot’ and poetic prose from Ivan De Monbrison.
All along with a quiz, gifts, submission opportunities, marketing and business advice and the secrets of controlling attention!
Galaxy # 16: An Inner Circle Writers' Group Science Fiction and Fantasy Anthology
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies
Fairy tales retold, intrigue on spaceships, the consequences of time travel, rescue and adventure in space, clones and counter-clones, angels and spirits, the job of Death, cultures of the supernatural, and galaxy-spanning love - it’s all here in this volume, plus Pauline Ashwell’s quirky novella ‘The Lost Kafoozalum’.
Featuring the work of Deryn Pittar, the Birch Twins, Linda Sparks, Mark Pearce, Gareth Macready, Jonah Jones, Michal Reiben, DJ Elton, David Painter, Tony Fyler, Dawn DeBraal, CL Steele and Pauline Ashwell.
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
by Howard Pyle
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/library-shop
‘Here you will find a hundred dull, sober, jogging places, all tricked out with flowers and what not, till no one would know them in their fanciful dress. And here is a country bearing a well-known name, wherein no chill mists press upon our spirits, and no rain falls but what rolls off our backs like April showers off the backs of sleek drakes; where flowers bloom forever and birds are always singing; where every fellow hath a merry catch as he travels the roads, and ale and beer and wine (such as muddle no wits) flow like water in a brook…’
In this classic tale penned by Howard Pyle in 1883, Robin Hood becomes an outlaw after a conflict with foresters and has many adventures recruiting his Merry Men, resisting the authorities, and aiding his fellow man. The fabled stories of Robin Hood are here: Little John defeating Robin in a fight with quarterstaffs, Robin's besting at the hands of Friar Tuck, his meeting with Allan a Dale, Will Scarlet, his conflicts with the Sheriff of Nottingham and the rest all appear. In the end, King Richard the Lionheart comes to Sherwood Forest and the legend closes in rich and inspiring fashion.
A Clarendon House Classics Edition
Marketing for Writers
by Grant P Hudson
In this series of interconnected essays, Grant P. Hudson, founder of the independent press Clarendon House Publications and author of many books including How Stories Really Work and Become a Professional Author, examines the whole idea of marketing and what it means for writers trying to sell their books.
Ranging from the purely theoretical to the highly practical, this book is guaranteed to open your eyes and astonish you.
You’ll learn
* what marketing really is
* what a correct sequence is in marketing a book, from your heart as a writer to the heart of readers
* the tired old myths of marketing, how they arose, why many still think they apply, and what to do instead that actually works
* brand new approaches to selling your book which involve zero extra costs and which you will actually enjoy
* how you have been bamboozled by our culture into swallowing some counter-productive and dangerous ideas - and how to ‘unbamboozle’ yourself
* and much much more!
THE INNER CIRCLE WRITERS’ MAGAZINE # 65
The Great Clarendon House Writing Challenge continues: turn to page 10 to read the five Technical Entries - and then VOTE for your top three to decide who goes through to the final!
On page 26 we meet author E. Raye Turonek and learn about her life and work and the ins and outs of publishing and self- publishing, and on page 66 we get special insight into Shakespeare’s Macbeth from experienced author Elizabeth Bailey!
On page 82 we begin an illustrated serialisation of Your Biggest Challenge as a Writer, based upon survey results from the field of writers like you - you’ll be startled by what it reveals!
We continue George MacDonald’s ‘At the Back of the North Wind’ and get the concluding instalment of Nikolai Gogol’s fascinating tale ‘The Overcoat’, and of course, much more!
Poetica # 18: An Inner Circle Writers' Group Poetry Anthology
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies
Poetica # 18 features the work of Fhen M., Lisa H. Owens, the Birch Twins, Gareth Macready, Catherine A. MacKenzie, Jonah Jones, Poetry by Christina, Carmen Baca, John Grey, Kortisha Y Baker, Kerri Jesmer, Peter Kenny, Ms. Petrouchka Alexieva, Fariel Shafee, Tim Law, Afshan Aqil, Linda M. Crate, James Croal Jackson, DJ Elton, Mike Turner, Tony Fyler, Linda Sparks, Jim Bates, Deryn Pittar, Justin Wiggins, Dawn DeBraal, Michal Reiben, Ed Ahern, Trish Bailey, David Painter, Suranjit Gain, Kelli J Gavin, Giuseppina (Pina) Marino Leyland, Jacek Wilkos, Craig Richard Tickner, Sultana Raza and Joseph M. Butler.
Fictivity: Key Concepts Behind Effective Storytelling
by Grant P Hudson
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/library-shop
How does an author’s own life story really impact upon his or her fiction?
What is it that all human beings are continually creating?
How can you reach into the heart of your own work and guarantee your success as a storyteller?
What drives all fiction?
How do goals really work?
How can you harness the indescribable power of metaphor to lift your work out of the ordinary?
Learn about storytelling in ways you never imagined.
Discover fundamentals so universal that they were invisible.
Become a master author.
Grant P. Hudson, founder of the independent press Clarendon House Publications, publisher of over 200 books, editor of the Inner Circle Writers’ Magazine, and author of the phenomenally successful How Stories Really Work and the practical guidebook to writing success Become a Professional Author, reveals the secrets of an over-40-year study into the world of fiction. You will never look at stories the same way again.
THE INNER CIRCLE WRITERS’ MAGAZINE # 66
The Great Clarendon House Writing Challenge 2024 is building to its climax - this month, we find out which three stories YOU voted for to determine who will get through to the final next month! You can start finding out what it’s all about on page 10!
Also in this issue: we meet Mike Turner, songwriter and poet; Tony J. Fyler reviews the audiobook version of John Le Carré’s A Murder of Quality; George MacDonald meets his hero Diamond in the next chapter of ‘At the Back of the North Wind’; and we get a glimpse into the dreams of H. P. Lovecraft in his short story ‘Celephaïs’.
Then you get to explore the writer’s biggest challenge on page 94, tackle business issues common to any small enterprise on page 116, and much more, including a quiz and submission opportunities!
Galaxy # 17: An Inner Circle Writers' Group Science Fiction and Fantasy Anthology
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies
Dark revenge on other worlds, surprise alien visitations, robots with dilemmas, djinn in suburbia, dystopic visions, deep space rescue, super-advanced technologies, alien infestations, a visit to the Sun, and a bonus feature: Alexander Marshall’s ‘Tale of the White Daughter of Arke’, set on the distant world of Emerald - all this and more is contained in this Galaxy for your reading delight.
Featuring the work of the Birch Twins, Raphael Merriman, Ed Ahern, Jonah Jones, A. L. Paradiso, Kathy Sherwood, Jacek Wilkos, Dawn DeBraal, DJ Elton, Tony Fyler, Bill Swiggs, Jim Bates, Mea Silverstone, Lisa H. Owens, Linda Sparks, David Painter, Shiloh Osheen and Alexander Marshall.
The Ghost Birds and Other Stories
by Jill Kiesow
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/jill-kiesow
Sometimes you are lucky enough to come across an author who, no matter what she turns her hand to, you can be sure of it being brilliant. Jill Kiesow is such an author. Whether she’s writing poetic prose, or an animal story, or horror, or a crime thriller, you know immediately that you are in good hands. Her stories weave a web around you so that before you know it, you are fully engaged and captivated. Her writing is at once both visually effective and poetically enchanting, whether drawing us into the world of a carnival, sympathising with a homeless cat, describing the seasons, dwelling with a man dealing in an unusual way with his deceased wife, or trying to stay sane in a lonely lighthouse on the shores of a gloomy lake - and so much more.
If you want to be charmed, enchanted, fascinated, beguiled, and delighted, get this unique and wonderful collection now.
WINDOW IN THE HEART
A Collection of Christian Testimonies
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/linden-books
The idea for this book arose out of a perceived need to do something more actively in the field of faith.
The concept was to have people answer a set of simple questions:
What was your first experience of Christ?
When would you say you first called yourself a Christian - and why?
What does Christianity mean to you?
What advice would you give to other Christians?
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Those who responded chose to answer in a variety of formats, some writing their testimonies longhand, others quoting Scripture, others laying out answers to the specific questions above.
The results speak for themselves: a wide range of experiences, all deeply personal as you might expect, but all centring around a strong faith, which, like a lighthouse in the night, has both saved individuals from disaster and shown them ways of living.
THE INNER CIRCLE WRITERS’ MAGAZINE # 67
The excitement builds to a crescendo in this month’s issue with the final entries for the Great Clarendon House Writing Challenge appearing! Turn to page 10 to find out what it’s all about and to begin reading -remember, YOUR vote might decide who wins a book contract in 2024!
In this fiction-packed issue: not only do we have the three stories based on dialogue for the Challenge, but also Part One of On the Run the sci-fi novella by Pam Van Allen; ‘The Pretenders’ by Gary Bonn; the next instalment of ‘At the Back of the North Wind’ by George MacDonald; and ‘The Remarkable Rocket’ by Oscar Wilde.
In addition: all kinds of story-writing and marketing wisdom in the next part of Your Biggest Challenge as a Writer and The Wonderful World of Marketing!
There’s much more, including submission opportunities, a quiz and incredible free gifts!
Spacetruckers # 4: The Wrong End of Nowhere
by Andrew and Helen Birch
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/andrew-and-helen-birch
The Emerald Queen, an old green CX19 cargo dropship with a colourful history, travels across a whole universe of planets, spaceships, companies, corruption, tricky decisions, passions and tragedies, piloted by the wonderfully complex character Alicia Brooke and her co-pilot Jim Carver. Resonant of the 2000AD comic, Red Dwarf and Blake's Seven, the whole Spacetruckers world continues to develop, grow rich with excitement, meaning and emotion.
Andrew and Helen Birch, authors of Travels with a Barbarian, bring you the continuing story from the Spacetruckers universe, for lovers of genuine science fiction, stories with emotion, pathos and a sense of humour.
Poetica # 19: An Inner Circle Writers' Group Poetry Anthology
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies
Poetica # 19 features the work of Fhen M., the Birch Twins, Lisa H. Owens, Dr. Elizabeth V. Koshy, Gareth Macready, Craig Tickner, Elizabeth Brown, Giuseppina Marino Leyland, Ms. Petrouchka Alexieva, Jim Bates, Kerri Jesmer, Annie Nardone, Helen Jones, Peter Kenny, DJ Elton, Kimberly Burnham, Claire O’Connor, Tony Fyler, Ruth Morgan, Sultana Raza, Medha Godbole Singh, David Painter, Mike Turner, Jonah Jones, Trish Bailey, Kelli J Gavin, Poetry by Christina, Justin Wiggins, Jacek Wilkos, Tim Law, Catherine A. MacKenzie, Dawn DeBraal, Anne-Marie Lake, Linda Sparks, Suranjit Gain and Michal Reiben.
THE INNER CIRCLE WRITERS’ MAGAZINE # 68
This month is momentous for several reasons: firstly, you can find out who won this year’s Great Clarendon House Writing Challenge on page 12. Help to celebrate the offer of a book contract from Clarendon House!
Secondly, you get to meet fabulous author Anja Schön on page 20!
Thirdly, George MacDonald’s Classic Masterpiece, ‘At the Back of the North Wind’, comes to its emotional conclusion, starting on page 78.
Fourthly, the series we’ve been running on How Businesses Really Work concludes with a review of the basics - see page 114. In addition, there’s the next instalment of Pam Van Allen’s sci-
fi thriller ‘On the Run’, plus more wisdom about your writing career in Your Biggest Challenge on page 102.
AND Mark Twain’s story ‘The £1,000,000 Bank-Note’ begins on page 132!
There’s much more, including submission opportunities, a quiz and incredible free gifts!
The Luck Bird: A Speculative Poetic Collection for Dreamers, Artists and Mystics
by DJ Elton
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/djelton
As lovers of poetry we like to be touched by the written word and find meaning in what we are reading. We like to slowly sip on our words, like a fine juice, or devour them with gusto as they give rise to our feelings. Those we know and those we are yet to discover. The intention behind this collection of mostly speculative poetry is to do just this. Reading poetry stimulates the soul. It tunes our emotive antennas. They are receptive and nourished…
There is something evocative here for everyone. A nerve to be touched, a hand to be held, a pain to be alleviated. We are all dreamers, artists and mystics if the truth be known.
Ned's Redemption: A Speculative Short Story Collection
by DJ Elton
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/djelton
In writing and reading fantasy and science fiction stories there is the pleasure of succumbing to the magical and chaotic forces of worlds that are collapsing, renewing or triumphantly winning. As writers, we are free to peruse all the possible “what if’s,” and contemplate how to craft the known (or unknown) past into imminent or uncertain futures with a heightened sense of wonder and speculation.
This book of short stories will allow you to pursue new places where the norms are time and space travelling, talking with animals, trees, agitated and disobedient robots, ghosts with a sense of protective tenderness, or plans of revenge, or even a need for atonement (see the title story, “Ned’s Redemption”). You will meet many types of fae personalities from the manipulative to those who love humankind, entertaining druids, mysterious underwater forces, reckless and pizza-stealing dragons, powerful pure maidens, and evil disguised as true love. It’s all here waiting in these thirty plus stories.
Galaxy # 18: An Inner Circle Writers' Group Science Fiction and Fantasy Anthology
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies
Reincarnation, the afterlife, mystical teachers saving the world, living concepts, alternate Egyptian history, apocalyptic futures, neighbourhood djinns, interplanetary pen-pals, alien invasions with a difference, witches, talking animals, mysterious other dimensions, murder and mercy in space, and a chance to revisit Alexander Marshall’s time-travel classic ‘Doctor Zenith and the Cerebrachrone’ - all this and more await you in this packed volume.
Featuring the work of Gareth Macready, Jonah Jones, C. L. Steele, Tony Fyler, Brandon S. Pilcher, Susan Imbs, Jim Bates, Linda Sparks, Valerie Fuqua, Afshan Aqil, DJ Elton, Keith ‘Doc’ Raymond, Ruth Morgan, the Birch Twins, Mark Pearce, Timothy Law and Alexander Marshall.
THE INNER CIRCLE WRITERS’ MAGAZINE # 69
So much in this issue!
We meet L. T. Waterson, author of the collection of short stories Falling, and there’s the next instalment of Pam Van Allen’s sci-fi thriller ‘On the Run’, plus you can learn so much more about your own writing in our new series Your Author Prospectus, beginning on page 100. Then discover even more in Your Biggest Challenge on page 115.
Also this month we begin the lavishly illustrated classic The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame on page 36.
There’s poetry from Giuseppina Marino Leyland on page 10, and Mark Twain’s story ‘The £1,000,000 Bank-Note’ concludes, beginning on page 132!
There’s much more, including submission opportunities, a quiz and incredible free gifts!
Poetica # 20: An Inner Circle Writers' Group Poetry Anthology
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies
Poetica # 20 features the work of Jesse Highsmith, P.A. O’Neil, Linda Sparks, Afshan Aqil, Peter Kenny, Justin Wiggins, Jim Bates, grey_fountain, DJ Elton, John Grey, Jacek Wilkos, Jannat Fatma, Giuseppina Marino Leyland, Kerri Jesmer, Michal Reiben, Tim Law, Craig Richard Tickner, the Birch Twins, Linda M. Crate, Annie Nardone, Irma Kurti, Catherine Lee, Ms. Petrouchka Alexieva, Mike Turner, Poetry by Christina, Jonah Jones, John Drudge, Tony Fyler, Dr. Elizabeth V. Koshy, Fhen M., Sharon Frame Gay, Marlene Fabian Stiles, Dawn DeBraal, David Painter, Suranjit Gain, Kelli J Gavin, Thomas R Bates, Rick Haynes, Anahit Arustamyan, Gareth Macready, Trish Bailey, Catherine A. MacKenzie.
Mystical Moments & Magical Encounters: A Collection of Prose & Poetry
by Carmen Baca
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/carmen-baca
Spirits, angels, saints, talking boxes, trees, journals and more live in the pages of this eclectic and esoteric mix of reality and imagination. Ephemeral and eternal worlds meet in the Land of Enchantment through mystical moments and magical encounters. Baca weaves old world traditions, ancestral rituals, cultural customs, and archaic superstitions with the beliefs and spirituality of an insular people known as los Norteños.
Pulling threads from her family’s history and from her own encuentros with the unexplained, Baca offers perspectives about what such tiny fabrics of time might be: are we perhaps visited by the dead? What inspires those wrong place or right time instances which change our lives’ direction? Do miracles exist? Fate? Design or free will? Stitching fact with fiction, Baca hooks readers into exploring possibilities.
She asks, “Have you ever had a moment, a feeling, that you’re in the presence of…of… something for which there is no rational explanation? I’ve felt them; haven’t you? A sudden chill, a presentiment, / A strange sensation awakens. / A whiff of a nostalgic scent, / A fleeting blur in the corner of the eye, a rise or fall of the / Temperature or a breath of wind in the face so sudden / We wonder if we imagine them. We know who they are.”
THE INNER CIRCLE WRITERS’ MAGAZINE # 70
This month, Shawn M. Klimek talks to us about his life and work including the fabulously illustrated book The Hungry Thing.
We get to meet Mr Toad in our serialisation of the classic The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, and continue our adventures in the next instalment of Pam Van Allen’s sci-fi thriller ‘On the Run’.
Then we have Jack London’s poetic Western gem, ‘All Gold Canyon’ in Master Author Showcase.
Your Author Prospectus starts to open your eyes as to the value of your own message, and Your Biggest Challenge gives you advice on how to turn things around and actually start building a viable career as an author.
There’s much more, of course, including submission opportunities, a quiz and incredible free gifts!
Galaxy # 19: An Inner Circle Writers' Group Science Fiction and Fantasy Anthology
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies
In this amazing eclectic edition of Galaxy, we have a number of experimental pieces, stories told through poetry, as well as tales of magic medallions, dealers in death, advanced civilisations, dystopias, android societies, magical fantasies, ghosts and aliens, and a special bonus feature from the pen of Tobias Green.
Featuring the work of Raphael Merriman, CL Steele, Sultana Raza, Tony Fyler, Mea Silverstone, DJ Elton, Timothy Law, A. L. Paradiso, Justin Wiggins, Marlene Fabian Stiles, Jonah Jones, Mark Pearce, Jim Bates, Lisa H. Owens, Valerie Fuqua, Linda Sparks, Catherine A. MacKenzie, Michal Reiben, Allan Tierney, the Birch Twins, Rick Haynes, W. S. Reed and Tobias Green.
THE INNER CIRCLE WRITERS’ MAGAZINE # 71
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/magazine
In this special issue, we get to catch up with Warren Alexander and
find out about his new book Success Is Not An Option, plus find out his tips on how to write, how to get a book deal and how to be funny.
Mole journeys into the Wild Wood in our serialisation of the classic The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, and we continue our adventures in 1950s Memphis in the next instalment of Pam Van Allen’s sci-fi thriller ‘On the Run’.
Master Author Showcase presents ‘A Christmas Memory’ by Truman Capote, one of the most moving short stories ever written; David Painter relates a different and hilarious Christmas memory; and we have Christmas poems from Afshan Aqil, Mark Scheel and Jean Frost Smith, as well as Thomas Hardy.
Your Author Prospectus outlines how to create emotion for readers, and Your Biggest Challenge helps you to understand the perils of inertia in your life and how to escape it in order to carve out a writing career.
There’s much more, of course, including submission opportunities, a Christmas quiz and incredible free gifts!
Travels with a Barbarian 2: The Warrior and the Mage
by Andrew and Helen Birch
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/andrew-and-helen-birch
Come with Skarr of Tor Fell and her battlemage companion Elina Greypepper, back to the barbaric world of their first adventures; journey with them to Shahvastan, through the Akalui desert on the Falwaz Express; meet the devilish Queen of Red Tor; discover the awful perils of the Maiden’s Clasp and the Headsman; travel to the grim city of Callargh; marvel at the machinations of the Empress Chang and the Baroness Nepherlite of Nowestry; and learn what becomes of the girl once called Justine, who has perhaps lived too long and seen too much war…�From the creators of Spacetruckers comes the second instalment of the fabled Travels with a Barbarian.
Poetica # 21: An Inner Circle Writers' Group Poetry Anthology
https://www.clarendonhousebooks.com/anthologies
Poetica # 21 features the work of Tim Law,Lisa H. Owens, Catherine A. MacKenzie, Afshan Aqil, Sultana Raza, Michal Reiben, Craig Tickner, Jacek Wilkos, Jannat Fatma, Gerald Jatzek, Jim Bates, DJ Elton, Peter Kenny, the Birch Twins, Ruth Morgan, Poetry by Christina, Tsitsi Faith Mutukwa, Linda M. Crate, Mike Turner, Anne Marie Lake, Jean Frost Smith, Justin Wiggins, Tony Fyler, Dawn DeBraal, Nnamdi Chinkere Anyahara, Kerri Jesmer, Aminath Neena, Linda Sparks, Kaneix, Trish Bailey, David Painter, Suranjit Gain, Kelli J Gavin, Gareth Macready, Maria J. Estrada, Anahit Arustamyan and Giuseppina Marino Leyland.
